MARCH IN REVIEW: City beautiful March Published April 11, 2011 By Master Sgt. John Hale 452 AMW Historian MARCH AIR RESERVE BASE, Calif. -- The geometric layout of March Field is particularly evident in this spectacular aerial photograph taken around 1932. The main gate, which now serves as the entrance to the Green Acres Estates, is centered at the bottom of the photo, with Meyer and Riverside Drives extending to the upper left and right of the photo. The base plan is the work of head architect Myron Hunt, the designer of--among many other Southern California landmarks--the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, the Huntington Library in San Marino and the Spanish Wing at the Mission Inn in Riverside. The flight line forms the hypotenuse of a large right triangle, and the buildings are grouped along functional lines, which was in keeping with Hunt's use of the "City Beautiful" tenets for urban planning. City Beautiful was an architectural movement centered on logical organization along geometric lines, and was intended to inspire civic virtue in the residents through monumental buildings and structures. At March Field, the graceful lines of Hunt's plan melded seamlessly with the efficient operation of an Army Air Corps flying field. Baucom Avenue figures prominently in the base design, running from the main gate, past the Commander's house and the parade field, to end at the headquarters building on the flight line. This main thoroughfare was named for Captain Byrne V. Baucom, a World War I American ace who was twice awarded the Distinguished Service Cross and fought in the Battle of Chateau-Thierry, the Battle of Saint Mihiel and the Battle of the Argonne. Captain Baucom died when his DH-4 crashed enroute from Kelly Field to March Field in 1928.